Social Worker - Shropshire Council

Human Resources & Development - Form 35 Version 15- Issued October 2022 JOB DESCRIPTION AND PARTICULARS OF APPOINTMENT ▪ Job Title: ▪ Post Number: ▪ Grade and SCP: Band 11, SCP 29-33 (Senior Social Worker Band 12, SCP Social Worker - Looked After Children 34-38 - dependent on skills and experience) ▪ Directorate: Children's Social Care and Safeguarding Where your role fits at Shropshire Council As Shropshire Council we are rightly proud of our achievements and we have proven to be a resilient local authority in our response to the many challenges we overcome, particularly over recent years. We will be continuing this momentum with ambition and a focus on delivering our four key priorities outlined within the Shropshire Plan: Healthy People, Healthy Environment, Health Economy and Healthy Organisation. We are committed to achieving this by aligning everything we do to our vision 'Shropshire - living the best life'; to tell everyone that Shropshire Council is a great place to be. We will enable a skilled, happy, healthy, diverse, inclusive, empowered, and proud workforce that influences and leads change, addressing any inequalities. As a member of a team in the Children Looked After Service, you will support the achievement of these key priorities, making a real difference to the lives of people in Shropshire. The Children Looked After Service is a dynamic area of our social care and safeguarding offer to the children, young people and families of Shropshire. Within Children Looked After Service you will have the opportunity to work with children and young people who are in the local authority's care. Overview of your role As a Social Worker within the Children Looked After Service, you will be responsible for undertaking ongoing assessment work and intervention with children and families. You will be progressing children's plans and ensuring that they are accessing the right level of service at the right time. You will be working closely with colleagues and partner agencies to ensure that the voice of the child is heard, recorded and forms an integral part of your case planning. Who will your manager be and what will you be responsible for? You will be: ▪ reporting to your Team Manager who is in turn responsible for your health and safety, training and development. ▪ Responsible for contributing to responses in line with Shropshire Council's corporate processes and national/regulatory/statutory processes (e.g. complaints, MP enquiries, Information Governance requests, customer enquiries, media enquiries, HR staff investigations etc..). These responses should be in line with the quality and timescale expectations set out within Shropshire Council's published procedures and/or case allocation emails and discussions. ▪ Responsible for completing within expected timescales all mandatory corporate and role specific training. Training requirements will be detailed in your corporate induction and Personal Development Plan (PDP). Courses are accessed via the council Learning Management System via the Intranet. What will you be doing? ▪ To visit and work with families as required, assessing and re-assessing children's needs whilst being looked after by the local authority. ▪ To act as a Case Manager and co-ordinate appropriate review meetings. ▪ To act as Key Worker in cases where a CLA Plan is in operation. ▪ To provide and contribute to Child & Family Assessments as required. ▪ To contribute to and to develop ways of identifying and assessing children determined to be in need within the criteria set out in the Children's Services Plan. ▪ To provide children and families with particular information and advice to assist in resolving problems. ▪ To liaise with other agencies on behalf of service users, to co-ordinate the various resources and arrange specific types of assistance. ▪ To carry out statutory duties as authorised by the Service Manager, Safeguarding Service and the Assistant Director and Director of Peoples Services. ▪ To present evidence and reports to Courts as required. ▪ To take part in the team's Duty system as required. ▪ To maintain computerised records and documentation in accordance with approved policies and procedures. ▪ To work in collaboration with parents, guardians, carers and other professionals in relation to Children Looked After and to maintain records in accordance with CLA requirements. The post holder may be required from time to time, to undertake other duties appropriate to this grade which may not be specifically mentioned in this job description. In addition to the above duties, the post holder will be expected to demonstrate the following skills: to be fully competent over a range of appropriate duties and responsibility; to demonstrate a detailed knowledge of relevant legislation, procedures and a) b) resources; to show that they are fully competent in case recording, administration and to show that they have attended the necessary supervisory sessions and has to establish that they are able to recognise situations where it is appropriate to be able to recognise potential repercussion of a decision beyond the local c) associated tasks; d) to seek further advice; e) used these constructively; f) level e.g. other agencies, political considerations, the media etc; g) Health, Safety and Welfare policies and procedures; h) to develop an understanding and awareness of issues related to equal opportunities and anti-discriminatory practice and to demonstrate this in carrying out your duties; i) development of self through staff development processes. to comply with safe systems of work in accordance with the Directorate's responsible for promoting continuing personal and professional/vocational The above duties are an illustrative outline and are not an exhaustive list. You will be expected to become involved in a range of work to enable the service to respond effectively to the changing requirements of the Council and changes affecting the workforce. What we expect of you You will: ▪ adopt a customer focused approach when delivering your service, ensuring engagement with service users and maintenance of an appropriate personal profile, ▪ act as an advocate for your service and work collaboratively with colleagues across the whole Council to meet the needs of the people of Shropshire, ▪ meet individual, service and personal development targets agreed through the Personal Development Review Process, learn from experience and are committed to continuous improvement individually and as an employee of the Council, ▪ work with colleagues to meet your team's key performance indicators, support a culture of team working and ensure the team functions successfully in support of the Council's corporate and service objectives. ▪ meet the behaviours and competencies adopted by the Council in the way in which they achieve their objectives and carry out their work. What are your conditions of Service The conditions of service are those laid down by Shropshire Council, which have been adopted and amended as necessary from those laid down by the National Joint Council for Local Government Services. Your primary work base will be at The Shirehall, Shrewsbury with the requirement to regularly work from home. Your post is subject to the following: ▪ The post is permanent, for 37 hours per week, ▪ Normal office hours are 08:45 - 17:00 - Monday to Thursday and 08:45 - 16:00 on Fridays with a minimum lunch break of 30 minutes. Occasional evening work may be required, ▪ The post is subject to the Council's annualised hours scheme as implemented within the specific work area. This post carries eligibility to join the Local Government Pension Scheme. Information about this will be sent with any formal offer of appointment. Annual leave entitlement is a pro rata flat rate scheme of 207 hours (28 days) annual leave plus bank holidays, with five days extra awarded to those staff with five years local government service giving an entitlement of 244 hours (33 days). Two days of an employee's allowance (pro rota for part time staff) must be taken at Christmas for any potential Christmas closures. Employees who work in a building/service which is required to open over the Christmas period, the two days leave (pro rota) can be carried over into your next leave year but must be used by the end of March. The appointment is subject to one month's notice in writing on either side. The appointment is subject to six months' satisfactory probationary service during which time the notice period will be one week on either side. Smoking is not allowed in Council buildings, in Council vehicles or in any Council place of work. It is a condition of your appointment that you provide a suitable vehicle for the performance of your duties and that this is readily available for use during normal working hours. You are entitled to claim for reimbursement of the costs of travel on council business at the rate of 45 pence per mile. What pre-employment checks will we undertake? The appointment is subject to receipt of the following pre-employment checks; 1. Satisfactory employment references, 2. Medical report, 3. Evidence of the qualifications required for the post/listed on your application form, This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and as such all applicants who are appointed to this post will be subject to an Enhanced Disclosure from the Disclosure and Barring Service before the appointment is confirmed. This check will include details of cautions, reprimands or warnings as well as ...